AuthorTopic: Pump action Bug-A-Salt to take down insects in a hail of table salt (Read 1654 times)

If you’re looking for something badass that provides a sense of satisfaction when taking out those pesky bugs then it’s hard to go past the Bug-A-Salt. The brainchild of Santa Monica-based artist Lorenzo Maggiore, the Bug-A-Salt is a pump action gun that takes out pests in a blast of non-toxic table salt.

The “insect eradication device” has an effective range of three to five feet (0.9 to 1.5 m) and holds enough salt for around 50 shots. Once filled via the loader cap on the top, the gun is primed by pumping the handgrip. This activates the pop-up sight for taking aim and the auto-safety, which needs to be manually disengaged before firing. This is because firing it into someone’s face is likely to sting quite a bit and could potentially damage an eye.

The Bug-A-Salt fires just a pinch of salt (no batteries required) with enough force to kill a fly, while still leaving it intact. This makes it easy to dispose of the remains or, now that the fly is a little more tasty, maybe enjoy a snack – or not. Either way, the use of salt as the projectile means you can fire away with gay abandon around food, which isn’t possible with toxic fly sprays. Not to mention, shooting the insects is bound to be much more fun.

Maggiore has finalized the design of the Bug-A-Salt and has turned to crowdfunding site indiegogo to cover manufacturing and shipping costs. With 48 days still remaining, the project has well and truly surpassed its US$15,000 goal with a total of over $89,000 raised so far. Contributions start at $30, which will entitle you to one Bug-A-Salt, and range up to a $2,500 “Arms Dealer” tier that secures you an arsenal of 144 Bug-A-Salts.

The Bug-A-Salt can be seen in action in Maggiore’s indigogo video pitch video below.